New York, the first stop for “Fashion Month”

By

Florent Gilles

Published
Sep 2, 2013

What insiders have nicknamed “Fashion Month” starts Thursday in New York with the Spring-Summer 2014 collections. Featuring contemporary fashion, mass market launches and designer shows, New York definitely offers up the most intense and eclectic program of the four-stop marathon of Fashion Weeks.

Contrary to popular belief, luxury design isn’t completely absent from New York’s program, where it is represented by the likes of Jason Wu, Proenza Schouler, Maiyet and Altuzarra. Still, if New York has one outstanding characteristic, it is surely its emphasis on “contemporary fashion,” with its inclusive style and its pre-eminent marketability. Thus, New York’s Fashion Week continues to attract most of the leaders in this niche: 3.1 Phillip Lim, Rag & Bone, Helmut Lang, and the latest entries in the sector, Theyskens’ Theory, Edun, Raoul and MM6. As a result, brands accessible to the general public join in the celebration in New York, far more so than in Paris.

This trend is marked this season by the arrival of European brands Desigual and AllSaints. While Desigual is celebrating the opening of its flagship store on Fifth Avenue with a runway show at Lincoln Center on the 5th, AllSaints is planning a two-day digital and musical program on the 8th and 9th. The hip boutique Opening Ceremony will make the New York runways its home as well, presenting its own collection for the first time on the evening of the 8th. Also on the retail side, several collaborations will be introduced: 3.1 Phillip Lim for Target, Richard Chai for eBay and Jason Wu for Lancôme.

Kicking off this week of runway shows, the 10th Annual Style Awards, coproduced by IMG and traditionally private, will for the first time be aired on CNN (!) on September 5. Another attention-grabbing media event: the September 11 preview and New York opening of Mademoiselle C., the documentary tracking Carine Roitfeld and her life after Paris Vogue – and FashionMag.com will have more on that soon.

If the number of shows seems to increase, there’s also been a gradual decline in the number of menswear collections being shown in New York, due perhaps to timing. Thus, Rag & Bone, Thom Browne and Band of Outsiders are being joined in this strategy by Tommy Hilfiger and Michael Kors, who will show only womenswear in September, their menswear having already been introduced in July. Still, some menswear labels, including Michael Bastian, Tim Coppens and the Korean brand General Idea, are resisting the trend and will present menswear in New York. On the other hand, womenswear designer Jeremy Laing will introduce a menswear line for the first time this season, with a mixed runway show like those of Edun, Lacoste and Y-3. Ending a week whose tight schedule will see nearly a hundred designers and brands showcasing their collections practically simultaneously, Marc Jacobs will hit the runway Thursday evening, September 12.